Nikon
D2Xs Digital SLR
First Look Review

Nikon
D2Xs: The
digital SLR blending 12.4 effective megapixels
and high precision with high speed for greatly refined performance

June
1st, 2006. Nikon has today introduced
the Nikon D2xs
digital SLR camera. Following in the footsteps of the 12.4 MP
Nikon D2x digital SLR, the professional Nikon D2xs shares many
performance and design innovations with the Nikon D2x. It also
offers the same Nikon DX-format image sensor.

Compared
to the Nikon D2x
digital SLR, manageability
and convenience has been enhanced in the Nikon D2xsthrough a number of refinements.

The
D2Xs includes improvements to the viewfinder for easier viewing
during High-speed crop mode, an
updated 11 area AF system designed to perform even faster and
with greater precision, the addition of a new LCD with a 170-degree
wide viewing angle, significantly increased battery life with
a new EN-EL4a battery, the
use of a new color scheme for menu displays offering easier viewing,
and new custom settings options, to name but a few.

Nikon
has confirmed that a Nikon D2X firmware update will be made available
by this Fall, which will extend the majority of the performance
and usability improvements incorporated in the new Nikon D2Xs
to existing Nikon D2X owners. Kudos to Nikon for once again supporting
their past loyal customers in this way. (Nikon offered a similar
firmware upgrade on the Nikon D70 digital SLR after the Nikon
D70s was released)

The
manufacturer's estimated street price on the Nikon D2Xs is $4699
in the US. Nikon Canada has said that a price will be made available
closer to the release date of the D2Xs in July.

The
Nikon D2X is currently selling for around $4449 US from reputable
dealers such as Adorama
and B&H
Photoless
a $500 Nikon USA mail-in
rebate for a total price of $3949. A quick check
of Canadian authorized dealers this morning found some selling
the Nikon D2X for under $4600 CDN.

Expanded selection
of options for Focus Tracking with Lock-On (almost same as the
Nikon D200). Lock-On auto focus suitable for different shooting
scenes is available. Four options are available: Long, Normal,
Short, and Off. Selected under Custom Setting menu a4. Only two
options, On (default) and Off, were available
with the Nikon D2x. Scenes
for which each option is effective:

Long:Scenes in which the distance between the primary subject
and the background is rather short, as with wild bird photography.

Short: Scenes in which
the distance between the primary subject and the background
is greater and immediate tracking is required when the frame
composition changes.

Improved viewfinder performance when in High-speed Crop modeThe viewfinder on the Nikon D2xs
now darkens the peripheral area not included within the High-speed
Crop mode frame, making it faster and easier to frame the shot. On the Nikon D2X the High-speed Crop frame is indicated
by the red corner markers.

3D-Color Matrix Metering for High-speed Crop mode
Calculation areas in high speed crop mode on the Nikon D2Xs
digital SLR have been optimized for Matrix Metering and i-TTL
Flash Control. When center-weighted metering is used with High-speed
Crop turned on, the diameter is automatically changed to 10mm
even if it has been set to 13mm coverage. This is because a
circle with a diameter of 13 mm is larger than the High-speed
Crop area. When
spot metering is used with High-speed Crop turned on, the AF
areas on the left and right edges cannot be selected.

New
ultra-wide angle LCD for improved viewingThe new 2.5- inch LCD monitor on the Nikon D2Xs delivers
a wider viewing angle with 170-degree horizontal and 170-degree
vertical viewing performance (same as the 230,000-pixel TFT
LCD on the Nikon D200). In addition each Nikon D2Xs LCD monitor
is calibrated at the factory before the camera ships to ensure
consistent playback color fidelity.

Maximum
shots per burst (continuous shooting)With
the Nikon D2Xs digital SLR. the maximum number of shots that
can be taken in continuous shooting mode has been increased
to 60 frames. As in the D2x, the number of shots remaining before
memory buffer becomes full is displayed on the top control panel
and in the viewfinder. Using Custom settings menu d2, the maximum
number of shots that can be taken in a single burst in continuous
mode with the Nikon D2Xs can be set to any value between 1 and
60. With the Nikon D2X the maximum number of frames was 35.

The
new Nikon EN-EL4a Li-Ion battery supplied with the Nikon
D2Xs digital SLR is the same physical form (size and
shape) as the EN-EL4 supplied with the Nikon D2X, but
with significantly increased capacity.

The
Nikon EN-EL4 battery is rated at 1900mAh
capacity versus
2500mAh capacity with the EN-EL4a.

The
Nikon D2Xs is fully compatible with earlier Nikon EN-EL4
Li-Ion batteries, and the new EN-EL4a battery is backwards
compatible with the Nikon D2X digital SLR.

Revision to the Recent Settings menu (same as
the Nikon D200)
The list of Recent Settings can be locked, or all items can
be deleted. When Recent Settings are locked, no items are
added or removed as new settings are applied. Users can keep
a list of frequently used settings here. The entire list of
Recent Settings can also be deleted at once.

A
Save and Load Camera Settings option has been
added on the Nikon D2Xs. With
the "Save & Load Camera Settings" function in
the Setup Menu, it is now possible to store or load camera
settings to or from a memory card. This new feature is particularly
useful when multiple Nikon D2Xs cameras are to be used with
the same settings.

Addition
of multiple custom tone curves
A total of three custom tone curves can be downloaded
to the Nikon D2xs (the Nikon D2X allowed for one custom
tone curve).

Nikon
Camera Control Pro software (available separately) can
be used to download up to three custom tone curves to
the camera. Choose Custom in the Nikon D2X menu to select
a user defined curve. If no custom curve has been created,
this option is equivalent to the Normal setting.

Addition of Black and White Option in Colour Mode Settings MenuAdditional
color rendering option. A monochrome (black
and white) setting
has been added. Take pictures in black-and-white with a wide tone
range suited to a wide variety of subjects, from portraits to
landscapes. This option is only available when sRGB is selected
for Color Space.

Additional
ISO increments to ISO 800 or higher sensitivityThree
finer increment settings have been added between ISO 800 and Hi-1
on the Nikon D2Xs. Addition of HI 0.3, HI 0.5, and HI 0.7 provides
closer ISO control to suit a wider variety of scenes.

Maximum
sensitivity and minimum shutter speed settings Under
the Nikon D2Xs
ISO Sensitivity Auto Control menu (found under Custom
Setting Menu b1), a
maximum auto ISO sensitivity setting can be selected in
the ISO range from 200 to 800 to maintain fine detail and
image quality.

The
effects of camera shake can be prevented when shooting in
Aperture Priority and Program exposure modes by specifying
a minimum usable shutter speed from 1/250 - 1s.

New
In-camera image trimming feature Trimming that was previously only available
through the use of image editing software can now be performed
in the Nikon D2Xs. When immediate image transfer through a network
is required, this function eliminates time taken for software
editing and improves work efficiency.

The
Nikon D2Xs trimming feature allows you to create a cropped copy
of the original image. You can select the size and position of
the crop. Cropped copies are saved as FINE-quality JPEG images.
Depending on the size of the crop, copies will be 2,540 ×
1,920, 1,920 × 1,440, 1,280 × 960, 960 × 720,
or 640 × 480 pixels in size.

Images
that have been cropped include the same white balance, shooting
data, and image optimization settings as the original. Camera
orientation is not included in the new cropped file, with the
result that all copies are shown in landscape orientation when
played back from the camera. Any voice memos associated with the
original image are also not included.

Trimming
is available only with photographs taken with the Nikon D2Xs.
The D2Xs can not be used to tirm photographs taken with other
cameras. If a photograph taken at a setting of NEF (RAW) + JPEG
is selected, the trimming will apply to the NEF (RAW) image.

New USB cable with locking mechanism provided with Nikon D2Xs
A new locking mechanism has been added to the Nikon D2Xs to prevent
the USB cable from being yanked out of the port. This mechanism
also supports a reliable connection by eradicating movement within
the USB port.

Enhancements
to the Nikon D2Xs Function Button with new Custom Setting f5 Custom setting f5 allows the user to set the
camera operation that will be performed when pressing the Function
button and rotating the command dials.

Option

Description

None
(default)

No
operation is performed if command dials are rotated while
FUNC.
button is pressed.

Hi-speed
crop

FUNC.
button and main command dial can be used to turn highspeed
crop mode on and off. Hi-speed crop mode can not be changed
after the first shot in multiple exposure.

1
step spd/
aperture

If
FUNC. button is pressed when rotating command dials, changes
to shutter speed (exposure modes S and M) and aperture (exposure
modes A and M) are made in increments of 1 EV.

Non-CPU
lens data

FUNC.
button and command dials can be used to specify focal length
and aperture of non-CPU lenses